Maintaining situational awareness is a crucial skill in every decision-support situation. Wildland fires that threaten populated areas have the potential to inflict devastating damage to communities and can also threaten the personnel working on the fire. This lesson ... Read more »

This lesson will introduce National Weather Service (NWS) forecasters to the communication strategies used for decision support services during wildland fire incidents. It also serves as a baseline for practices that leverage unique NWS capabilities to assist land ... Read more »

This lesson describes current and future satellites sensors and products used for monitoring the fire cycle, with an emphasis on polar-orbiting satellites. Product information is presented in the context of the fire lifecycle: from assessing the pre- and post-fire ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 12: Gauging Fire Behavior and Guiding Fireline Decisions examines how fire behavior is evaluated and changes are identified, and how these changes affect fireline decisions. Topics in this module build upon information covered in previous units and applies it to ... Read more »

The purpose of this unit is to introduce the online version of the Intermediate Wildland Fire Behavior, S-290 course. The unit discusses the overall course objectives, the content covered in the twelve units comprising this course, course navigation, and the contributors ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 10: Fuel Moisture provides information about live and dead fuel moisture contents and their relation to fire behavior. Influences on fuel moisture and methods for estimating dead fuel and live fuel moisture in the field are summarized, and guidance is offered for ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 7: Wind Systems outlines general and local winds and their processes. Detailed information is provided about critical fire weather winds, including frontal winds, foehn winds, and thunderstorm winds and the effects of these winds on wildland fires. The module ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 3: Fuels covers the effects of fuels on fire behavior and the terminology for describing fuel characteristics, as well as fuel models used for classification. This module is part of the Intermediate Wildland Fire Behavior ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 2: Topographic Influences on Wildland Fire Behavior provides
an overview of how topography affects fuels and the
direction and spread of wildland fires. Information on features of
topographic maps and estimating slope is also presented. This module is
part ... Read more »

S-290 Unit 1: The Fire Environment examines the components of the fire environment triangle and how each affects fire behavior. As part of this topic, heat transfer mechanisms and firebrand transport and the contribution to fire behavior are included. Basic fire terminology ... Read more »

This webcast covers procedures for taking accurate weather observations using belt weather kits and descriptions of other common weather observing equipment used in fire weather. In addition, maintenance of the primary components of the belt weather kit are ... Read more »

The "S-290 Unit 8: Keeping Current with the Weather" distance learning module describes fire weather information and products available from Predictive Services and the National Weather Service. Summaries of the products, including significant fire potential, monthly and ... Read more »

“S-290 Unit 5: Temperature and Relative Humidity Relationships” module focuses on methods of describing humidity in the atmosphere and how temperature changes can affect relative humidity. Topics from this module will be further related to effects on potential fire ... Read more »

The “Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course Orientation” module introduces the organization of the course, the topics presented, and the intended audience, as well as the motivation for converting this course to online training. This web module is part of the ... Read more »

The “Fire Weather Climatology” module provides a comprehensive look at fire regions across the United States and characteristics of typical fire seasons in each region. In addition, critical fire weather patterns are described in terms of their development, duration ... Read more »

The “Mesoscale Meteorology Effects on Fire Behavior” module reviews the development of thermally forced winds in complex terrain and explores how these winds combine with the effects of terrain to influence fire spread. Three-dimensional conceptual animations illustrate ... Read more »

The “Stability, Smoke Management, and Fire Weather Forecasting” module examines the effects of atmospheric stability on fire behavior and the transport of smoke, as well as fire and smoke management operations. Topics covered include the impacts of the formation, ... Read more »

This module provides a comprehensive overview of the three main dimensions of the fire environment triangle: fuels, topography, and weather. Five interactive case studies illustrate the interdependent influences these three dimensions have on fire behavior. A wide range of ... Read more »

The “History of the Incident Meteorologist Program” describes the evolution of fire weather support by National Weather Service meteorologists, including the more recent expansion to other hazardous incidents and significant national events. This webcast also reviews ... Read more »

The Fire Model Matrix is an on-line resource that presents four fire community models in a matrix that facilitates the exploration of the characteristics of each model. As part of the Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course, this matrix is meant to sensitize forecasters to ... Read more »

The Structure of the NWS Fire Weather Program explores the joint agreement between NOAA’s NWS and land management agencies to develop an appreciation of the contribution each agency makes in providing the best possible fire weather services. As part of the Advanced Fire ... Read more »

This is part 2 of a 2-part Webcast based on a presentation by Dr. David Whiteman on August 11, 2004 in Boulder, CO. Dr. Whiteman presents conceptual and practical information regarding winds in the planetary boundary layer in complex terrain. Part 2 topics include valley ... Read more »

This is part 1 of a 2-part Webcast based on a presentation by Dr. David Whiteman on August 11, 2004 in Boulder, CO. Dr. Whiteman presents conceptual and practical information regarding winds in the planetary boundary layer in complex terrain. Part 1 topics include diurnal ... Read more »

A webcast presentation by Dr. Timothy Spangler (Director of the COMET Program and a former air quality consultant). This 25-minute lecture provides an overview of the basics of dispersion, the effects of different atmospheric conditions on dispersion, and how dispersion is ... Read more »

This website provides an overview of factors that affect the ignition and spread of wildfire. Information is presented with 3-dimensional graphics and animations as well as audio descriptions and commentary provided by a fire behavior expert. You don't need extensive ... Read more »

This Web-based module is a component of the Integrated Sensor Training (IST) Professional Development Series (PDS) Professional Competency Unit #6-Satellite Data and Products. Dr. Stan Kidder of the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) at Colorado ... Read more »

Dry lightning storms often initiate forest fires in areas such as Nevada. A recent collaboration between the University of Nevada and the Reno NWS Forecast Office developed a new forecast procedure that has resulted in capturing thunderstorm events that may have gone unnoticed in the past. For more information, check out their report.

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About Our Training Resources

Our training consists of lessons and courses. A lesson is targeted toward one focused subject, whereas a course is a collection of lessons that pertain to a broader subject area. You can receive certificates of completion for both lessons and courses. Courses are entirely self-paced and available for open enrollment. We also list a select set of resources that are not hosted on MetEd that are of high quality and of interest to our community.

Virtual Classroom

The COMET® Program's virtual classroom provides access to material in support of our residence and virtual courses. These courses are generally available by invitation only and are hosted at our UCAR facility in beautiful Boulder, Colorado.